Barricade with flashing signal



April 14, 1970 E-. D. NUNN 3,506,959

BARRICADE WITH FLASHING SIGNAL Filed Oct. 9, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 I A aril 14, 1970 I I E. D. NUNN 3,506,959

BARRICADE WITH FLASHING SIGNAL Filed Oct. 9, 19s? 4 sheets-sheet:

Ema l Mmzz E. D. NUNN BARRICADE WITH FLASHING SIGNAL April 1 4, 1970 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 9, 1967 may 1 /2221 2; c I 'Iv a I I f I I I I I I! United States Patent US. Cl. 340-114 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A folding barricade having hingedly connected frame sections, each of which has a transversely extending panel, has the battery case of a flashing signal unit secured to the inner face of one of said frame panels, with the intermittently illuminated head of the unit projecting above the panel and disposed at such an inclination to the plane of the panel that when the barricade is in use the head stands erect. The mounting of the flasher head on the battery case includes a rubber grommet which provides the mounting with resilient yieldability so that upon impact the flasher head can tilt in any direction from its normal erect posture. The rubber grommet also frictionally holds the flasher head in any position of rotation to which it may be turned.

This invention relates to barricades equipped v with flashing signal units, but is more particularly concerned with the signal unit of such barricades and the manner in which it is associated with the barricade.

Barricades of the type with which this invention is concerned are now widely used by road construction c0ntractors, building contractors and by many others concerned with the problem of warning motorists and pedestrians of dangerous conditions. These barricades generally comprise a pair of hingedly connected sections which lie flat upon one another when the barricade is in its folded condition for transport and storage, but swing out to an open, spread apart relationship to enable the barricade to stand firmly where placed.

Mounted in some suitable manner on the barricade is a flashing signal unit which conventionally comprises a flasher head having an electric light source therein mounted on a box or case which contains a battery and control instrumentalities electrically connected with the light source of the flasher head and the battery to effect intermittent energization or flashing of the light source.

Since such barricades are subject to a high incidence of damage in use, the industry has constantly sought ways of protecting the most expensive portion of the struc'turenamely, the flashing signal unit. By the same token, barricade manufacturers have striven to achieve cost reduction and servicing convenience without sacrificing reliability.

The present invention has attained these objectives by enclosing the vital parts of the signal unit and its battery in a metal case or box so mounted on the barricade that it is at all times protectively located between its hingedly connected frame sections and, more specifically, between transverse panels which form part of those frame sections.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a flashing signal unit especially adapted for use on barricades, wherein the flasher head of the unit is so mounted on the battery case or box that despite the inclined position of the case or box due to its being secured to the panel of one of the hingedly connected frame sections and thus disposed at an angle during use of the barricade, the flasher head stands erect.

Another object of this invention is to provide a flashing signal unit for barricades wherein the mounting of 3,506,959 Patented Apr. 14, 1970 the flasher head on the battery case is characterized by resilient yieldability which permits the flasher head to tilt in any direction without damage to its connection with the battery case, in the event of impact caused by tipping of the barricade or from the application of any other force to the flasher head.

A further object of this invention is to provide a flashing signal unit of the character described, wherein the battery case has an elongated rectangular shape to conveniently accommodate the flat rectangular batteries now being used quite extensively to power such signal units as well as the control instrumentalities of the unit, and in addition is thin enough to fit between the panels of the hingedly connected frame sections which comprise the barricade without interfering with complete juxtapositioning of the sections as the barricade is folded for transport and storage.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a flashing signal unit of the character described in which the flasher head and the control instrumentalities are mounted on a removable top wall portion of the battery case so that upon detachment of that top wall portion, the control instrumentalities are exposed and the battery may be removed and replaced, all without disturbing the remainder of the battery case or box or its securement to a supporting structure such as the panel of a barricade.

With these observations and objects in mind, the manner in which the invention achieves its purpose will be appreciated from the following description and the accompanying drawings. This disclosure is intended merely to exemplify the invention. The invention is not limited to the particular structure disclosed, and changes can be made therein which lie within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the invention.

The drawings illustrate two complete examples of the physical embodiment of the invention constructed accord ing to the best modes so far devised for the practical application of the principles thereof, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a barricade embodying this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side view of the upper portion of the barricade showing the same in its position of use with its hingedly connected frame sections spread apart;

FIGURE 3 is a side view of the upper portion of the barricade in its folded condition for transport and storage;

FIGURE 4 is a longitudinal sectional view at an enlarged scale through the flashing signal unit of the barricade and the panel on which it is mounted, parts thereof being broken away;

FIGURE 5 is a rear elevational view of the upper portion of the signal unit, with the cover of its battery case or box removed;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the upper end portions of the legs at one end of the barricade, shown separated for clarity of disclosure;

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of a modified form of the signal unit, with parts broken away to better illustrate details of construction;

FIGURE 8 is an exploded perspective view of the parts which collectively form the battery case or box of the signal unit shown in FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 9 is a cross-sectional view through FIGURE 7 one the plane of the line 7--7;

FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary end view of the upper end portions of the legs at one end of the barricade, illustrating a slightly modified form of hinge connection therebetween and with the hinge bolt in cross section; and

FIGURE 11 is a perspective view of the structure shown in FIGURE 10, but with the bolt and nut removed.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in which like numerals identify like parts throughout the several views, the numeral 6 designates generally a barricade of more or less conventional design and construction, having mounted thereon a flashing signal unit 7.

The barricade comprises a pair of frame sections 8, each of which consists of a pair of legs 9 connected by a panel 10. The legs are simply lengths of angle iron and the panel is usually a piece of suitable plywood, the side edge portions of which are riveted or otherwise firmly secured to the legs. The two frame sections are hingedly connected at their upper ends to be movable relative to one another between a folded or closed condition in which the sections are in parallel juxtaposition to facilitate transportation and storage, and a defined open spreadapart relationship shown in FIGURE 1. Although any suitable means may be employed to hingedly connect the frame sections, the use of shouldered rivets 11 passing through aligned holes in the overlying flanges 9a of the legs aflords a very practicable and inexpensive connection.

To define or limit the extent to which the hingedly connected frame sections may be spread apart, the upper ends of their legs have inwardly directed tongues 12 which abut one another when the frame sections are fully spread apart. Conveniently, these tongues are simply inwardly bent projections of the flanges 9b of the angle iron legs.

The flashing signal unit 7 comprises an electrical flasher head 13 mounted on the upper end of a metal case or box 14 which houses a battery 15 and control instrumentalities collectively identified by the numeral 16. The control instrumentalities govern energization of the light source in the flasher head with electrical energy derived from the battery. As shown in FIGURE 5, the light source preferably is a lamp bulb 13' detachably received in a socket at the end of a plastic tube 17, containing the leads 17' by which the terminals of the lamp socket are electrically connected with the control instrumentalities as diagrammatically shown in FIGURE 5. The tube 17 with the lamp bulb in position thereon, is inserted into the bore of a hollow mounting stud 18 which projects down from the base of the flasher head and into the upper portion of the case or box. The stud 18 constitutes part of the structure by which the flasher head is mounted on the case or box 14, as will be later described.

The control instrumentalities are also connected with the leads 19 of the battery, preferably through separable connectors (not shown) to facilitate replacing a dead battery with a new one.

Preferably also, a light sensitive cell 20 is incorporated in the control instrumentalities to turn on the flasher automatically when failing light conditions require it to be operative, and when a manually operable switch 21 has been closed. The light cell 20 is clamped to the underside of the top wall 22 of the case or box 14 in line with a hole therein by means of an arm 23, and the switch 21 which is of the push-push type is mounted on a bracket 24 spot-welded to one wall of the case or box, with the actuator of the switch in line with a small hole 25 in the adjacent wall of the case or box. The bracket 24 also has the remaining structure of the control instrumentalities mounted thereon.

The control instrumentalities are thus located in the upper portion of the case or box 14 while the battery 15 is in the lower portion thereof resting upon a shelf 26 fixed in the case or box a short distance above its bottom wall 27 One of the features of this invention is that the case or box 14 in which the battery and control instrumentalities are housed has a relatively flat elongated shape with its rectangular major walls 28 and 29 connected by narrow the panels 10 thereof, without interfering with full closure of the barricade to its folded relationship in which the frame sections are in parallel juxtaposition with the panels 10 quite close to one another. In other words, the case or box is thin enough to fit within the relatively narrow space between the panels when the barricade is folded up for transport or storage.

As a result of the defined size and shape of the case or box, the invention achieves protection for the vital parts of the flashing signal unit as well as exceptional compactness for the entire structure.

The signal unit is mounted on the barricade by securing the case or box 14 to the inner face of one of the panels 10. This is conveniently accomplished by engaging a hook 32 which is welded to one of the major walls 28-29 of the case or box over the top edge of the panel to dispose the wall to which the hook is fixedin this case the wall 28contiguously to the inner face of the panel. A screw 33 of the type having a head which can be operatively engaged only with a special tool, passes through the panel and the lower portion of the case or box beneath the shelf 26 and is threaded into a nut 34 fixed to the wall 29 to secure the signal unit against unauthorized removal.

Since the flatwise securement of the case 01' box 14 to one of the panels 10' of the barricade places the same in an inclined posture when the barricade is in use, the flasher head would not stand erect if it were mounted on the case or box with its median plane parallel to the major walls 28-29. To overcome this objection, the mounting of the flasher head disposes it at an inclination as shown, so that when the barricade is in use with its frame sections spread apart, the flasher head stands erect as it should. To this end the top wall portion 35 of the case or box upon which the base of the flasher head sets and through which the hollow mounting stud 18 passes, is downwardly inclined towards the wall 28 and hence towards the panel 10 on which the unit is mounted.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG- URES 1-6 the inclined wall portion 35 is the entire top wall 22 of the case or box 14; whereas in the other embodiment of the invention shown in FIGURES 7-9, it is the titled top of a hat-shaped stamping 36, the brim portion 37 of which is spot-welded to the top wall 22' of the case or box over a hole 38 therein. In either case the hollow mounting stud 18 which is rigid with the flasher head projects through a hole 39 in the inclined flat wall portion 35, which is considerably larger than the diameter of the stud and hence accommodates a resiliently yieldable grommet 40.

The grommet 40, which is made of rubber or similar material encircles the stud 18 and normally holds the flasher head erect and perpendicular to the inclined wall portion 35 on which it is mounted, but permits the flasher head to be tilted or displaced from that position upon impact. The resilient yieldability of the mounting thus affords protection against breakage of the mounting and even of the flasher head as a result of the barricade being knocked over and falling in such a way that the flasher head strikes the pavement or receives an impact in some other manner.

The grommet also serves to frictionally hold the flasher head in any position of rotation in which it may be desirable to place the same relative to the barricade, it being understood that nothing about the mounting prevents rotation of the flasher head except the frictional resistance to rotation of the stud 18 in the grommet. In addition, the grommet 40 provides a weather-tight seal for the hole 39 through which the hollow stud 18 of the flasher head enters the case or box 14.

As best seen in FIGURE 4, the grommet 40 is composed of two complementary washers 41-42, the former having the mounting stud 18 snugly received in its bore and being stepped in diameter with an upper large diameter portion 43 confined between the apertured wall portion 35 and the base of the flasher head from which the stud projects, and a small diameter lower portion 44 which fits the hole 39 and projects therethrough partway into the hole in the other washer 42. A clamping nut 45 threaded to the stud and a metal washer 46 complete the mounting, and of course restrain the stud from withdrawal from the hole 39.

The foregoing description of the resiliently yieldable flasher head mounting applies equally well to both embodiments of the invention illustrated.

The difference between the two illustrated embodiments of the invention resides primarily in the design and construction of the case or box 14.

In one form, that of FIGURES 1-6, five of the six walls of the case or box are provided by an integral stamping. They are the major wall 28, the top wall 22, the side walls 30' and the bottom wall 27. The sixth wall, i.e. the other major wall 29, provides a removable cover which is detachably held in place by the screw 33 which passes through the lower portion of the case or box and is threaded into the nut 34 on the cover-forming wall 29, and by a second screw 47 which is inserted through the cover 29 above the battery and below the control instrumentalities and is threaded into a nut 48 on the wall 28. Removal of the two screws permits the cover 29 to be lifted to expose the control instrumentalities and the battery, without detaching the signal unit from the panel on which it is mounted.

In that embodiment of the invention shown in FIG- URES 7-9, replacement of the lamp bulb and access to the control instrumentalities is more convenient since in this instance it is the top wall 22' which provides the removable cover. This top wall is part of a stamped and formed cap 50 having a downwardly directed marginal flange 51 which telescopes over the upper edge of a rectangularly tubular body portion 52. Since the flasher head is mounted on the top wall 22', removal of the cap permits the lamp mounting tube 17 to be quickly withdrawn from the hollow stud to permit replacement of a burned out bulb. It also quickly renders the control instrumentalities accessible for inspection and repair or replacement, if necessary, since they are carried by a bracket 53 projecting down from the cap. And, of course, with removal of the cap the battery can be withdrawn from the case or box.

The significance of the convenience which is afforded by having the cap removable and having the control instrumentalities as well as the flasher head carried by the cap, is that it enables any needed servicing to be done without in anywise disturbing the securement of the signal unit to the panel, since in this case only the lower screw 33 is employed, and it is located below the battery.

The bracket 53 not only has the control instrumentalities mounted thereon, but because of its proximity to the top of the battery, it prevents the battery being forcibly thrown from its proper position in the event the barricade is knocked over.

The body portion 52 can be a one-piece tube of rectangular cross-section but is more economically constructed of two identical stampings 54 which are secured together in reversed positions, by spot welding or the like. The bottom 27 is provided by another flanged stamping spot-welded or otherwise secured on the lower portion of the body.

Preferably the securement of the cap 50 to the body is effected by a pair of screws 55 of the type requiring a special tool, threaded into nuts 56 on the inner faces of the side walls 30, which nuts may be of the clinch variety and can be used to hold the body sections 54 together at the top. In the exploded perspective view of FIGURE 8, the nuts are not shown, but the holes in which they are received are indicated in broken lines.

To obviate complete withdrawal of the screws 55, the openings in the flanges of the cap through which the screws pass are slots 57 which open to the lower edge of the cap flanges and lead to shallow pockets 58 into which the heads of the screws seat when drawn tight so that the screws must be loosened before the cap 50 can be lifted. Preferably the ends of the screws are upset in the customary manner after they are threaded into the nuts, to prevent their removal.

Attention is directed to the fact that the top wall 22' is square with the rest of the case or box, so that by omitting the hat-shaped stamping with its tilted top and reducing the diameter of the hole 39, the flasher head can be mounted with its median plane parallel to the longitudinal walls of the case or box for installations which do not involve a sloping support such as the inclined panels 10; as for instance, where the box or case is simply secured to a vertical stake adapted to be driven into the ground.

With reference to the manner in which the frame sections 8 are hingedly connected, while the use of the shouldered rivets 11 to connect the sections and inwardly directed tongues 12 at the upper ends of the legs to limit angular separation of the frame sections as shown in FIG- URES 1, 2, 3 and 6, has the virtue of simplicity, it makes repair of this part of the structure diflicult, if not impossible. For this purpose, the construction shown in FIGURES 10 and 11 is more practicable. In this case, a shoulder bolt 60 passing through holes 61 in the legs hingedly connects the same. Since it has been customary for years to use such a bolted connection to hingedly connect the frame sections of barricades, legs provided with bolt holes at both ends so that the legs could be reversed end for end, are practically a stock item in the industry. But heretofore the bolt fit the holes with only the customary clearance.

By the simple expedient of using a smaller size bolt, the hinge connection permits the frame sections to be spaced farther apart when the barricade is in its folded or closed condition to better accommodate the case or box of the signal unit. To illustrate, the bolt holes 61 are usually one-half inch /2") in diameter; hence, by

using a three-eighths inch bolt an additional onequarter inch A") in the spacing of the closed frame sections is obtained.

To limit the angular separation of the frame sections, a spacer 62 is provided. This spacer is simply an angleshaped stamping having a small flange 63 drilled to receive the bolt 60, and a longer flange 64 to project upwardly and be interposed between the upper extremities of the legs and, by engagement therewith, limit the degree the legs can be spreadapart.

From the foregoing description taken with the accompanying drawings, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the barricade of this invention is a substantial improvement over those of the past.

What is claimed as my invention is:

1. A signal barricade of the type comprising a pair of frame sections, each having a pair of legs rigidly connected and held in laterally spaced apart relationship by an elongated flat panel extending transversely to the legs, the legs of each frame section being hingedly connected at their tops with the legs of the other to enable the frame sections to be swung to an operative position, oppositely inclined to the vertical, and to a storage position in which the panels are substantially parallel and define a narrow space between them, said barricade further comprising a signal unit comprising a closed box, a flasher head on the box having an electric light source therein, and means in the box comprising a battery and control instrumentalities for energizing the light source, said barricade being characterized by:

(A) said box (1) having substantially parallel front and back walls spaced apart a distance such that the box has a depth to fit within said space between the panels when the frame sections are in storage position, and

(2) having the major portion of one of its said walls flatwise underlying and secured to one of the panels so that the box is at all times between the panels and hence protected by them;

(B) the top of said box having an apertured wall portion at an elevation substantially no lower than the top edge of the panels and which is oblique to said one wall of the box so as to be substantially horizontal when the barricade is in operative position; and

(C) means securing the flasher head to said apertured wall portion of the box so that the axis of the flasher head is substantially horizontal when the frame sections are in operative position with their legs resting t on a horizontal surface.

2. The barricade of claim 1 wherein said means securing the flasher head to the box provides for the flasher head to be resiliently swingable in all directions relative to the box and comprises:

(A) a mounting stud projecting down from the flasher head through the aperture in said wall portion;

(B) a resiliently elastic grommet encircling said stud and seated in the'aperture; and

(C) means cooperating with the stud and the grommet to prevent withdrawal of the stud from the aperture and maintain the grommet in snug engagement with edge portions of said wall portion around the aperture therein so that the grommet forms a weatherproof seal for the aperture and frictionally resistsrotation of the flasher head out of any selected position of rotation around the axis of the stud.

3. The barricade of claim 1 wherein said box has a top wall which is substantially perpendicular to its front and back Walls and which has a hole therein, further characterized by:

said apertured wall portion comprising a hat-shaped member having a brim portion secured to the tof: wall of the box around the edge of the hole therein, and a flat apertured crown portion lying in a plane 8 which is tilted at an acute angle to the flat brim portion.

4. The barricade of claim 1, wherein the entire top Wall of the box is flat and is disposed at an obtuse angle to the front wall, further characterized by:

said apertured wall portion comprising a medial part I of the top wall of the box. 5. The barricade of claim 1, further characterized by: (A) said box comprising two major parts, one of which comprises the front wall and the other the rear wall of the box;

(B) said other major part forming a removable cover for the box; and

(C) the box being secured to said panel by means of a screw Which passes through aligned holes in the panel and the said one wall of the box and is threaded into said other major part.

6. The barricade of claim 5, wherein said screw passes through the lowermost portion of the box,

wherein said control instrumentalities occupy the upper portion of the box, and wherein the battery is located in the portion of the box below the control instrumentalities and above the screw.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,882,021 4/1959 Dreher 256-64 2,885,539 5/1959 MCDermott.

2,931,026 3/1960 Nelson 340-331 X 3,015,804 1/1962 Nunn 2402 X 3,264,461 8/ 1966 Osburn 2402 JOHN W. CALDWELL, Primary Examiner M. R. SLOBASKY, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

